


Family First

by jehall2



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Surprise Fandom, Team Iron Man Civil War - Fandom
Genre: Civil War Team Iron Man, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Not Clint Barton Friendly, Not Natasha Romanoff Friendly, Not Steve Friendly, Steve might get better, but gets better, not wanda maximoff friendly
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:41:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 11,284
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25430302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jehall2/pseuds/jehall2
Summary: Tony's need for family allowed the Avengers to betray him time and again, but what if he already had a family?  Eventual Crossover fanfiction.
Comments: 125
Kudos: 525





	1. Prologue

Tony stood staring out the window at the compound grounds. He had been at the compound for two weeks already setting up for the big move before the incident at the tower with Ultron. Everything had changed since then. Tony realized that, like Clint, it would soon be impossible to keep his biggest secret from the team. 

“The team,” Tony scoffed. If he had harbored any remaining doubts about whether or not the Avengers were the vaunted team that Fury and Steve liked to claim they were, he now knew for sure. And he had never been so glad that he had protected his secret from the likes of SHIELD, Fury, Natshalie, and Steve.

Recent events had changed everything. He knew now that he had to make the move to the compound. His employees, at what had first been Stark Tower and then later Avengers Tower, did not deserve the kind of danger that he seemed to attract. He also knew that he needed to fortify a much smaller space in order to enhance his security to the level that he needed. He would prepare for everything that he knew was coming. No more bowing to the good intentions of a soldier too stuck in the past to even understand how wars were fought these days. He would not risk his true family for anything or anyone, and that included the Avengers. That meant there had to be changes within the Avengers as well.


	2. The Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things Fall Apart.

“Tony, we were hoping you could come sit in on this meeting.” Steve’s arms were crossed confrontationally, and he was frowning, his brow deeply furrowed. As always when speaking with Tony. Funny how Tony had tried so hard to ignore that in the past, even when Steve was standing alongside Natashalie and holding his hand out for MORE, MORE, MORE! 

Howard had told the story of how Cap claimed his shield “despite my suggestion that it was unfinished and inappropriate” with a chuckle, downplaying what Tony now recognized as Steve’s sense of entitlement. For a poor man, a soldier, and “just a little guy”, Steve certainly acted like he was owed everything that he was given despite the fact that no one else was receiving weapons crafted from million dollar vibranium. He had been too good to take the suite that Tony offered him right up until he had completely destroyed his only source of income (SHIELD). Then he was “golly gee, Mr. Stark, I can’t thank you enough for this” before he went right back to ordering Tony around giving him judgmental looks as he walked around Tony’s home. 

It had been two days since he had his epiphany about what needed to happen. He had been on the phone with Rhodey and Happy for much of that time and finally Pepper and Harrison for the last day in its entirety. He supposed that now was as good a time as any to begin making the necessary changes.

“Sure. I’ll be down in a minute,” he said, looking at Steve before closing out several holograms. Steve blinked at his uncharacteristically agreeable response.

“Um, that’s great,” Steve said. “We’ll meet you in Conference Room A,” he added.

“Fine,” Tony said with a nod. He gave it a minute and then followed Steve out of the room.

**  
Tony followed Steve into the meeting room and sat at the large table across from Nat and Sam. A glance around the room illustrated just how this was expected to go. Nat, Steve, Sam, Clint, Wanda, and the Vision were the only ones in the room. So, the Tony Stark hate squad—though Vision was still something of an unknown. Tony hadn’t missed the looks that started shortly after Vision’s infatuation with the Sokovian woman began upon their arrival at the compound more than two weeks ago though.

“Tony, we need to discuss what is going to happen going forward,” Nat said in an even voice that did nothing to calm his nerves. The others seemed to surround him as some sort of interrogation.

“I agree,” he said, letting none of his nerves show. Steve smiled once they had Tony’s agreement.

“That’s great, Tony. So, we need to discuss what is going to happen with Wanda first and foremost.”

“She’s going to need to get a rush job on a Visa, Tony. And, of course, we’ll need to get her added to the security for the premises, here, along with Sam and the Vision, both of whom have decided to come on as full-time support.”

“Wow, you’ve been busy,” Tony said with as little sarcasm as he could manage. By the faces of those across from him, he hadn’t managed all that well.

“Well, it’s better to get things taken care of quickly, don’t you think,” Steve urged.

“I haven’t discussed my plans for the compound yet,” he said leadingly.

“The compound is great Stark. It looks like we’ll have everything we’ll need here. Nothing for you to worry about,” Clint said, his voice cool and eyes stone cold, none of their previous camaraderie on display.

“I thought you were planning to retire,” Tony asked, cocking his head curiously. He had a very long conversation with Laura, Clint’s wife, while he was fixing their tractor at their farm. She had seemed so excited, as if she couldn’t wait for this change—or rather that she had been waiting for it for quite some time. He understood due to his own circumstances.

“I’ve decided to hang around part-time for a bit, help Wanda acclimate to her new surroundings,” he said, patting the woman’s hand and smiling at her.

“Laura was okay with that? And the kids,” he asked, surprised, but the angry expression that he gave Tony at the question was even more surprising.

“My family is none of your concern, Stark! You wouldn’t understand,” he said dismissively, and Wanda smirked.

“Right, what would I know about family,” Tony said, rolling his eyes. “Except for what Laura mentioned when we talked for hours about how excited she was that you were finally going to retire,” he huffed.

Clint pushed his chair back and started to stand, aggressively, but Nat put a restraining hand on his arm, and he took his seat once more.

“As I was saying, Tony . . . we’ll need to get extra rooms set up for Sam, Wanda, and the Vision. ASAP,” Nat said with an intense look at Tony.

“About that. What I meant when I said that I had not discussed my plans for the compound is that certain things have changed. I’m not sure that I can realistically provide this space for the Avengers. I have other obligations that I need to fulfill,” he said. “And recent developments have illustrated certain differences of opinion that I need to take into consideration.”

Tony stared at the “Avengers” seated across from him and found that they were all looking at him like dirt, as if he was required to provide living spaces, money, and equipment for them while they spat at his every word. Nat and Steve especially looked like they were about to attack him.

“Tony, you said yourself that the tower isn’t livable right now,” Nat said.

“I did. And I don’t particularly want the sort of events that seem to surround the Avengers anywhere near my employees at SI. If anything, this has illustrated that I can’t mix SI and the Avengers anymore. The Avengers are too volatile. That doesn’t mean that I need to support you by letting you live here either, though. Last time I checked, everyone in this room is an adult,” Tony added with a leading look at Wanda.

“It was your murder-bot that attacked the tower in the first place, Stark,” Clint said angrily. “You owe it to us to take care of that.”

Tony stared at him before sitting forward.

“Setting aside the fact that you still haven’t addressed how you should be paying for yourself as an adult—I’m not SHIELD, afterall, and I have no responsibility to support a bunch of over-privileged ex-spies that brought their issues on themselves—have you forgotten the power of that scepter, Hawkeye,” Tony said lowly, using Clint’s name to let him know how angry he was himself becoming. “You, more than anyone, know the type of fucked up damage that artifact can cause. It was at the center of what happened with Ultron. I resent that you are trying to pin everything on me instead of the alien technology that we had been chasing down at the behest of Thor and Steve because SHIELD, your organization, was too shady to take care of it in the first place. You can take your selective memory and shove it up your self-righteous ass. You mention my murder-bot one more time and we’ll have to start talking about your years in a carnie-crime syndicate and assassinating anybody that disagreed with SHIELDra—that goes for you too, Natashalie. I’m not taking this gaslighting bullshit anymore. Especially not in MY own home.” 

“Tony sat back and watched as Clint sputtered and Natashalie recalibrated based on Tony’s little spiel.

“You said that we were welcome at the tower, Tony,” Steve said, surprised. “And you’ve talked for months about how the compound was going to be a home.”

“And it will be. But I’m expecting this to be MY home for MY family, Rogers. I made that offer before certain problems about how we treat each other were too obvious to ignore. And I don’t think that I can realistically trust you for my family’s protection since you care so very little for my own safety and security.”

Tony pulled out his phone, pressed a few buttons, and then began to play footage of Thor at the Tower as he attacked Tony and the Avengers did nothing as well as Wanda and Steve attacking Tony in his lab.

“Do we really need to talk about this, because I find it self-explanatory,” Tony said with a gesture to the footage.


	3. Jarvis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A standoff of sorts.

The rest of the meeting devolved into chaos after Tony’s quip about his personal security alongside the footage he had displayed. He sat back to enjoy the show while Sam and Clint were shouting at one another. Maximoff was pouting at Cap, and Nat was trying (and failing) to calm everyone down.

“Jarvis,” Tony said loudly, catching Maximoff’s and Steve’s attention as well as the Vision.

“Sir,” came the voice of Jarvis, causing Maximoff to startle and look at the Vision before sneering at Tony.

“If you would.”

“Certainly, sir,” Jarvis said amicably before playing a screeching sonic alarm that silenced everyone in the room.

“You stole Vision’s voice,” Maximoff accused, glaring at Tony.

“Wrong. They sound nothing alike really, as Jarvis achieved quite a bit of sass early on in his life. Vision is much less emotive. I’m not sure how you didn’t catch that. More importantly, however, Jarvis had this voice long before the birth of the Vision. I’ve been repairing his coding these passed weeks to get him operational once more. I had no intention of abandoning Jarvis just because he offered to help us defeat Ultron,” Tony added with a leading look, reminding Vision that Jarvis’s sacrifice had been a choice and not a directive.

“But it’s his now,” she said angrily.

“That’s not how it works, lady. You don’t get to dictate whether Jarvis lives or dies because you don’t think his base coding is fair. I’m sure Vision understands this.”

Vision looked briefly at Maximoff and then back at Tony with an indecipherable look on his face.

“I am . . . not sure . . . that I’m comfortable with this,” he said softly as Maximoff put a reassuring hand on his.

“OK, Vision. I’ll provide you with an apartment in the city until you’re able to get on your feet—let’s say two years of your bills and living expenses paid while you figure things out. Problem solved.”

“Tony,” Steve said, astonished. “You’re going to kick Vision out!”

Tony gestured to Vision.

“He said he’s uncomfortable with Jarvis. I’m not sure you guys are understanding this, but Jarvis is a part of my family and he will remain at the compound. If Vision has a problem with that, then he’ll need to leave.”

“Well, I’m not comfortable with another one of your murdering AI’s or you at the compound,” Maximoff sneered, crossing her arms and sticking her nose in the air.

“That’s fine. I had no intention of allowing you to stay here, and I doubt you’ll be able to get a Visa, what with your record for murder, torture, and terrorism,” Tony said with a shrug. And everything devolved into chaos once more.


	4. Maximoff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The reality of the situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm getting very close to the point where the crossover character comes in. Be aware that this is not entirely Marvel. Just getting the new lay of the land out of the way first.

It was chaos again for the next several minutes until Nat sat forward with an intense look at Tony. Funnily enough, this seemed to be the thing that everyone was waiting for as Clint sat back with a smirk and the others quieted down to listen.

“Tony, Wanda is a victim here. I’m surprised that you’re not taking responsibility for the damage that your weapons have caused,” she said leadingly.

“Starting with that, are we? OK, then.” Tony said with a smirk before turning to Steve. “Steve, where did you get your shield from?”

“From Howard. HE was a patriot,” Steve said with just enough judgment to imply that Tony was not.

“Exactly. And, despite his other failings as a father, he raised me to be a patriot too. The Stark family has always made weapons for the U.S. military. I continued that legacy as was expected because I, too, was a patriot—until I found that my company was too big to effectively control where the distribution of those weapons was heading. Once I realized my weapons could easily be sold under the table due to the increased scale of our business, I shut it down and transitioned to less lethal avenues of American excellence.”

“Except Wanda’s tragedy is a direct result of your inability to control those weapons, Tony,” Nat said in a soft tone as if she was incredibly sorry for the truth of her statement. “You did this.”

“That might be the case, except Maximoff’s tragedy isn’t a result of my failure. Her tragedy is a result of U.S. policy in Sokovia. I looked it up. The U.S. provided weapons to the official Sokovian government during its civil war to fight against the rise of Communism. It was official U.S. policy, Natashalie. Just because you’re a great big, fat commie and didn’t like how that story ended doesn’t mean I’m wrong. It means little Miss Witchy, here, has been on opposite sides all along and not just when she was an active Neo-Nazi terrorist. How do you think she’s going to fight alongside Sam, by the way,” he added with a smirk.

“You Americans had no right,” Maximoff screeched. “You didn’t belong there!”

“And we weren’t. We did provide weapons and supplies for our allies, as many larger nations do. And if you hate America enough to side with Neo-Nazis and do illegal experimentation to obtain unnatural powers, powers taken from the same entity that resulted in Ultron, by the way—well, I’m not all that sorry. You clearly are one of the bad guys. I’ve not seen any indication, besides a desire to save your own skin and then get revenge for the death of your brother, of any type of remorse or changing positions. Like I really want her living in my home around the people that I care about. She could attack their minds at any moment and we might never know,” Tony said in disgust.

Clint seemed to startle and eye Maximoff for a moment. Clearly, he’d forgotten that not only had her powers come from that thrice damned scepter, she wasn’t only about telekinesis. She could just as easily get in his mind as everyone else’s. He jerked before sneering at Tony.

“Of course, you don’t care about Wanda. She’s just an innocent kid whose life you ruined on your way to the top,” he said angrily.

Tony cocked his head as he squinted first at Clint, then at Wanda, and then back at Clint.

“Have you considered that she might be . . . impacting you even as we speak,” he asked Clint. “I’ll remind you first and foremost that she’s anything but innocent. First, she worked for Hydra. When they couldn’t give her what she wanted anymore she worked for Utron. And now that Ultron has fallen through she’s counting on you guys to clean up her mess. That self-serving resume for flip-flopping is almost as impressive as Natashalie’s. Though to be fair, Maximoff is still young,” Tony shrugged. “And Clint, you might consider how your lovely wife, the mother of your children, is going to see your desire to continue hanging around with the Avengers now that the twenty something, leather wearing Vamp making eyes at every male within twenty meters of her is hoping to live here. You sure you want to have that conversation, Barton?”  
Steve sighed and shook his head, hoping to stop that line of discussion.

“Tony, Clint is both right and wrong. I’m not blaming you for mistakes you’ve made in the past, but Wanda IS just a kid who has suffered from those mistakes,” Steve said, putting a hand on Tony’s shoulder.

“Did Howard make a mistake too, Steve? Were his attempts to serve his country any less than yours and any different from mine,” Tony asked, shrugging off Steve’s hand.

“WWII is over,” Steve said seriously.

“Yes, thank you, Steve. I’m aware of that seeing as it was covered in school. Just so you know, however, you sinking a plane in the Atlantic is not what ended WWII—the massive scale of destruction the atomic bomb achieved is. You know, that weapon that my dad worked on along with the others in the Manhattan Project. Dad made a weapon that ended one war and began a cold war, the second half of that equation that you never bothered to learn about and that we’re discussing right now. Did Maximoff suffer as a result of all of those policies? Doubtlessly. That doesn’t give her leave to seek revenge on anybody and everybody in the world involved in that. That creates a never-ending cycle of violence, Steve. One that you’re encouraging by simply writing off her own wrongs committed against those as she tried to kill me and you. Is Johannesburg ringing a bell? I suffered and remade myself, pulled myself up out of the desert in Afghanistan before changing my very outlook on the world. I’m not saying what I did was ever wrong, though, Steve, because I can guarantee that the only thing Howard would have judged me for would be shutting down our weapons division in the first place.   
What I’m saying is that my intentions have always been good even if I’ve decided to go about things in a different way now, but the same can’t be said for Maximoff—and she hasn’t earned the right to wipe her slate clean yet. Five minutes fighting alongside Captain America and becoming besties with the Avengers is not the same time as doing legitimate jail time for the very real crimes against humanity that she has ALREADY committed. You say to me that I owe this to Maximoff? Well, what does Maximoff owe to the hundreds and thousands that she’s hurt? I’m not buying what you’re selling. SHIELD may invest in writing off any and every crime when it serves their purposes,” Tony said, looking at Nat and Clint, “but that’s not how I do business. And last I checked, you weren’t offering to foot any bills.”


	5. What now?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The meeting continues.

“I think we’re getting off topic,” Sam said in his reasonable ‘I am a wannabe therapist’ voice. “What we really need to discuss is where we go from here.”

“I agree with SGT Wilson,” Vision said with a nod at the retired para-rescue. “Rehashing these events serves no purpose.”

“You misunderstand emotions and how structured teams must function, Vision,” Jarvis’s voice popped up immediately. “Should you research the function of therapy, you’ll find that much of it is about getting deeply seated emotional issues out in the open for discussion. Sir is well aware of this and has used the technique quite frequently as a method to achieve a more solid and well-functioning team in various departments at SI.”

Vision looked startled and vaguely sick for a moment.

“Of course, Jarvis. I see your point now,” grudgingly admitted.

“Thank you,” Jarvis replied smugly.

“Nevertheless, we need to discuss what Tony plans for the Avengers and the compound since he clearly has more of a say in things than anyone previously acknowledged,” Sam added reasonably with a nod to Tony.

Tony chuckled and then gave a look to Sam.

“I like how you did that, Wilson. That was cute. I have more of a say than anyone acknowledged? How about, the final say is mine.”

“Steve is team leader,” Clint said dangerously.

“And Nat has been my right hand through everything,” Steve added staunchly.

“OK. Steve and Nat can lead the team.”

Nat narrowed her eyes at Tony.

“But?”

“But I won’t be funding that team, and you’ll need to leave the compound ASAP.”

“You can’t just kick us out. That’s illegal, Stark,” Sam said.

“We have no written contracts on the compound, and nothing was officially written up after the fall of SHIELD for the tower either. You’re all essentially squatters, Wilson. You’ll find that I can.”

“I can’t believe you would do this,” Steve said lowly.

“And I can’t believe you thought you would invite the woman that fought alongside Ultron just to destroy me, me personally, onto the team that you asked me to fund and into the home that you knew I was building. You’re right, Steve. There is a betrayal here, but it’s not me that’s betrayed you.”


	6. New players

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony's family makes an entrance.

Pepper walked into the conference room, the Avengers clearly in a stand-off of some sort. Well, a stand-off between Tony and the leeches that had managed to attach themselves to him after the fall of SHIELD. Tony liked to think that New York had been the turning point, but Pepper, whose eye was always on the business side of things since her transition to CEO, knew that wasn’t quite true. Tony began to think of the Avengers as his after New York, when he became desperate for a team. The team only began to think of Tony, begrudgingly, after SHIELD was no longer there to foot the bill.

She glanced back to make sure that Harrison was still behind her. He was peeking around the corner, but she could only tell when she saw the thin fingers, seeming to float freely in the air, clutching the door jam. She smiled to herself, shaking her head. She would never get used to that cloak.

“What’s going on here,” she said loudly, moving to stand beside Tony.

“Thank goodness, Pepper. We need to discuss the basic business arrangement of our contract with SI. Tony seems to be working under a few delusions,” Nat said with a roll of her eyes and a commiserating look with Pepper—as if Pepper had forgotten what that sneaking viper had done when Tony was desperate and dying of palladium poisoning. Like giving him the necessary materials to create a cure when he was on death’s door instead of releasing his birthright to him after Howard’s death years before was anything other than a manipulating tactic.

Pepper chuckled.

“I’m sorry. Did you think you had contracts with SI?”

“You hired all of the remaining SHIELD agents,” Nat said simply.

Pepper laughed again.

“No, Agent Romanoff. We hired all of the agents that you and Rogers burned. None of the Avengers were addressed in that agreement because you cared enough about Clint and Steve to protect them from the disastrous fallout of your actions.”

“What,” Clint asked, sitting forward.

“Did you think Tony was still paying you, Agent Barton? What for exactly? Perhaps you should speak with your wife about the farm she maintains. It seems your savings must be more depleted than you thought,” she smirked.

Tony simply watched Pepper work, glancing behind her for a moment as he sought out Harrison. He knew his adopted son would be somewhere nearby, but this meeting had cemented his decision to protect him from the Avengers—Maximoff especially was a danger he could not tolerate, which had led to this confrontation when it became apparent the Captain would not back down when it came to his new favorite.

“Pepper, be reasonable,” Nat said softly.

“Oh, the only unreasonable people in this room aren’t on this side of table, Agent Romanoff. Did you think I would stand for your addition to the company that you blatantly sabotaged in the not so distant past? Of course not.”

“Tony, will you allow Pepper’s jealously to leave us, your team, your family, out in the cold,” she tried, turning to Tony and tilting her head coquettishly.

“Please, Romanoff. You were never competition for me,” Pepper scoffed. “And these tricks don’t work on a man whose relationship is rock solid. You’re just being pathetic now,” she added, shaking her head in disgust.

“We don’t have to take this kind of abuse from you . . . you . . . murderers and thieves,” Maximoff hissed, her hands beginning to glow, the scarlet enveloping Maximoff in a threatening mist.

Tony pushed Pepper behind him just as Steve stood.

“Wanda, please! You’ve got to calm down. I understand why you’re upset, and it isn’t fair, but this isn’t helping,” Steve tried desperately. Tony noticed that no one else was stepping up to reign in the overgrown child, and Vision suddenly seemed a lot less “worthy”—rather, Tony had suspected all along that the weapon’s notion of worthy was similar to the violent, warrior class whose definition of worthiness was stuck solidly in the past.

Maximoff let out an earsplitting scream and threw a bolt of red light directly at Tony, who stayed between Maximoff and Pepper, keeping her safe.

“No!”

All of a sudden, a young boy was standing in the room, appearing out of nowhere. He was holding out his own hands, an intense look of desperation marring his young features—thin, messy black hair and bright green eyes hidden behind glasses. Tony turned, ready to thrust Harrison behind him as well, but before he ever had the chance a bright, golden shield appeared in the air, rebounding the Witch’s hideous red right back at her.

Vision yelled and moved quickly to Maximoff’s side. She had been tossed into the far wall like a rag doll, clearly knocked out.

“Wanda,” Steve and Clint yelled.

“And now you see why I don’t want you lot anywhere near my family. And especially my son,” Tony said.


	7. Harrison Stark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Harrison Stark came to be.

Harrison’s thin chest heaved, but he still held his hands out tremulously hoping to control the wild magic that had burst from him. 

He had learned early on with the Dursleys how to control his accidental magic—to an extent. Though, Severus called it wandless magic, and said that he should be proud to have mastered his personal magics so significantly. Severus had never been shy about praising Harry after he had apparated into the man’s study shortly after finding a picture of him with his mother while hiding in Aunt Petunia’s attic after a particularly harsh beating by his Uncle Vernon. That accidental magic was the most important moment of his life since Severus’s cousin, Happy (it still made Harrison laugh to know that the grumpy potions master had a cousin named Happy!), visited shortly after when he was already staying with Severus. He would meet his Dad in just a few short days after that, and his whole life would change. 

**(Flashback)

“I don’t get what the big deal is,” Happy shrugged as he chomped into the apple. “He can’t go back to those people. So, keep him. You’ve got the money and the space,” he added.

“You don’t understand,” Severus muttered, pacing back and forth, his greasy hair flying all around as Harry silently watched. “He’ll never allow it.”

“Who,” Happy mumbled, apples bits flying. Harry scrunched his nose and Happy gave an embarrassed grin.

“Dumbledore. I’ve tried. He’s adamant that the boy remain with those people.”

“Sev, I remember Lily and what she meant to you. Are you gonna let some stuck up headmaster dictate whether or not you send her boy back to some abusive bastards? Really? Why is this even a discussion?”

“Happy, my hands are tied. Dumbledore is too powerful.”

“So, who’s more powerful than this Dumbledore man,” Harry interrupted softly, with a look first at Severus and then at Happy.

“No one,” Severus said seriously.

Happy just smirked.

“Let me make a call.”

Tony had come in like a whirlwind. He’d taken one look at Harry with his bright green eyes and messy black Harry, soft, unsure smile, and promptly seen . . . himself. Himself under the thumb of Howard Stark. And he couldn’t stand it. It was just after he had discovered the cure for his palladium poisoning. So, he had a new lease on life, and he and Pepper were happier than ever. In fact, he might describe her as positively complacent. Time to switch things up again!

He knelt down before Harry and tapped each should with his Starkphone.

“I dub thee Harrison Stark. Come on, kid. We’re going home.”

Severus had scoffed, clearly disbelieving that Happy’s genius boss could in any way stand against the force of Dumbledore. But Tony had simply cracked his knuckles, smiled, begun typing and speaking (to Mr. Jarvis INSIDE HIS PHONE!) before turning back to Severus and saying “It’s done. Harry Potter is no more, but Harrison Stark has been my son for eight years now.”

“I’m 10, sir,” Harry had whispered. Tony gawked at him, shrugged and said with a smile “Not anymore. Don’t worry about your birthday. I got you a new one.” He’d patted Harry on the shoulder, took his hand, and walked out of Severus’s run down house without another word, leaving Severus sputtering behind him while Happy shook his head and laughed.

**(End Flashback)

Now Harry not only knew what it was like to sleep in a luxurious bed, eat all that he could possibly imagine, and wear clothes that fit, he also knew what a hug felt like. He knew what it was like to wake up from a nightmare with a gentle hand on his head and a worried frown asking if he was alright just before he was ushered into bed to cuddle the nightmares away. He knew what it was like to be loved. Granted, he was quite certain that Tony’s kind of love was different from what he would have known with James and Lily Potter, but now he wouldn’t have it any other way.

So, when some red-headed bitch (sorry Dad!) tried to take that from him because she wasn’t allowed to continue taking advantage of his Dad—well, The Boy Who Lived might have might have come out to play.


	8. Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha recognizes Harrison Stark.

“Is that . . . Tony, is that Harry Potter,” Nat asked, stepping forward urgently and squinting her eyes at the dark haired boy who had taken out the next biggest powerhouse the Avengers had after Steve and Iron Man. She didn’t count Vision since Maximoff clearly controlled the synthezoid. She was searching his face for the scar when Tony responded.

Tony gave Romanoff a dangerous look before saying softly, but loud enough that everyone could hear, “Harrison, if anyone tries to leave this room before we’re ready, you wipe their mind. And I don’t care if they’re left drooling when you’re done. You understand?”

Harrison lowered his hands and nodded at Tony.

“Yes, Dad.”

“Tony!” Steve looked up from where he was leaning over Maximoff, giving Tony a shocked look. He didn’t know if the boy could really do what Tony asked, but that Tony would ask it of him was disturbing.

“You know what this means, Romanoff,” Tony asked.

“I know that Albus Dumbledore has been working with Fury to find this boy for the last two years. And I know that he’s the key to winning a war in magical Europe that has been raging for quite some time now.”

“And Fury wants to help Dumbledore out of the goodness of his heart, because he’s all light and good, just like the man that left Harry at the mercy of his abusive bastard of an Uncle and to be starved by his utter bitch of an Aunt. I’m unimpressed with your unimpressed look, Romanoff. Try again,” Tony said contemptuously.

“I know what this boy could mean to the entire world, Tony Stark,” Romanoff hissed. “And I know that you have no right!”

Tony struck quickly, shoving Romanoff against the wall with his repulsor watch whirring next to her face.

“If you think for one second that I’m going to let you and Fury treat my son like an asset, Romanoff, you are even dumber than you have consistently proven yourself to be,” he whispered. Romanoff pushed for a moment, but the heat pressed closer. “I will salt the earth with your ashes, Romanoff. I need you to understand that you . . . are . . . nothing to me. Once I’m finished with you, there won’t even be a memory left. Do you understand? The Ten Rings will have been child’s play compared to what I will do to you and SHIELD—yes, I know that Fury and Coulson are still out there. You’re all too self-serving to really risk yourselves. It’s the people like me and little Harry that you, Fury, and the Albus Dumbledores of the world continue to chew up and spit out. Not this time.”

Tony stared at Romanoff with eyes the color of pitch, and she swallowed. She knew in that moment, that every one of them had seriously underestimated the threat that Tony Stark posed. The question was, what was he doing with the Boy Who Lived? And could she still use this somehow? All of a sudden, Maximoff seemed a lot less impressive.


	9. The Issue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few truths are revealed.

“Nat, what’s going on,” Clint asked, looking back and forth between the confrontation between Nat and Tony and the boy who had completely destroyed Wanda. He stood and walked slowly towards the boy. “Hey. Hey, kid. Who are you,” Clint said as he knelt down before the boy with a friendly smile.

“If you come any closer to me, Agent Barton, my Dad will blow her face off,” Harrison said seriously, without even looking in Tony’s direction and Clint’s condescending smile was wiped from his face.

Tony snorted.

“Harrison, how long have you been waiting to say that,” Tony chuckled, shoving Romanoff back against the wall hard before stepping back to face his son.

Harrison smiled. “A while maybe,” he said with a mischevious grin that made him seem more Tony Stark than Harry Potter.

“Stark, is that little devil child serious,” Clint said aggressively, taking a step towards Tony.

“Watch your mouth, Barton. That’s my son you’re talking about,” Tony threatened right back.

“Your son? When did this happen, Stark,” Steve asked angrily. “I thought we were done with secrets after Ultron, Tony,” he added, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

“Barton kept his family secret to protect them,” Pepper said suddenly. “Well, so did Tony. Only SHIELD has always been as great a threat to Harrison’s safety as everyone else. As you might have noticed by Romanoff’s highly questionable if totally predictable reaction to his presence. If there’s one thing Tony Stark will never be, Captain Rogers, it’s gullible. You might take notes with the friends you choose to keep,” she added with a disdainful glance at Clint, Nat, and Maximoff.

Pepper moved beside Harrison and laid a soothing hand on his shoulder. He smiled sweetly up at her before looking back at the wayward Avengers.

“What is it,” Maximoff slurred, as she finally struggled back to consciousness, leaning heavily against Vision.

Pepper’s lip curled in disgust at the Sokovian woman.

“It is a little boy, Maximoff. You know, an actual kid. And HIS magic is entirely natural,” Tony said, moving slightly in between the Witch and Harrison.

“I’m a wizard,” Harrison said, raising his chin in pride.

“He has magic,” Maximoff questioned, her brows drawing together.

“I do,” Harrison said. “Not like yours though,” he added, scrunching his nose. “Your magic is sick.”

“How dare you,” she hissed, struggling to her feet.

“It doesn’t belong here. It’s making you sick,” he clarified.

"Hydra experiments," Tony muttered, shaking his head.

“Listen, son. I don’t know what Tony has told you, but there’s nothing wrong with Wanda and her magic,” Steve reassured, looking down at Harrison.

Harrison cocked his head and looked at the Captain in curiosity.

“You know, they’re all wearing her magic. His is dark, like what she first threw at my Dad,” pointing at Clint. “And there’s a bit on him and her,” he gestured to Sam and Nat who both startled and looked a bit sick. “The robot man is covered in it; it’s leaking out of him really, especially where that Stone is” Harrison shuddered. “But not you. Why is that?”

“Yes, Steve. Why is that,” Tony asked, looking closely at the Captain.

Pepper looked from Tony to Steve, and her mouth fell open just slightly.

“I can’t believe it! Not so gullible after all, are you Steve,” she asked angrily.

“What? What does that mean?”

“Tony,” Pepper said, looking at Tony sadly. “Don’t you see? This all began after SHIELD, when Steve started looking,” she added softly.

“Pepper?”

“Mind magic, Tony. Why would he need it,” she asked him leadingly with a heartbroken look in her eyes. “And why wouldn’t Maximoff have to nudge the good Captain? Not at all.”

Tony turned suddenly, looking intensely at Steve, who looked back nervously, beginning to understand that Tony and Pepper knew more than he had given them credit for.

“Steve,” Tony said softly. “You didn’t,” he asked shaking his head. “Tell me you didn’t invite this woman to destroy my life and everything that I care about all to protect James Barnes? Did you bring this monster into my home, let her into our heads, all to protect the Winter Soldier?”

“Tony,” Steve murmured urgently.

“Because sir has known all about the Winter Soldier from the very beginning, Captain Rogers” Jarvis interrupted, causing everyone but Tony, Pepper, and Harrison to jump. Steve was shocked by the amount of condemnation Jarvis had packed into that one statement. “You expected the Black Widow could hide digital information from sir, Captain?”

Tony looked at Steve and smiled, though it was ugly.

“Dad said a lot of things about you, Rogers, but he never said that you were so stupid.”


	10. Explosion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Steve get some things off their chests.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will move from serious to . . . something else, pretty quickly. Don't be surprised if you get confused. Just wanted Steve and Tony to have it out a bit. I really hate what Wanda did to them.

Steve sputtered Sam and Nat watched impassively. Tony was looking at Steve, and didn’t notice this, but Harrison was observing everything.

“They knew too,” Harrison said softly, tugging on his Dad’s coat. He pointed to Sam and Nat before looking back at his Dad. “They knew too, Dad.”

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about, sweetie,” Nat said, giving Harrison a soft look and a smile.

“Eww,” Harrison shuddered. “The Black Widow just mothered at me. Gross!” Pepper smirked and Tony laughed. Everyone was surprised to see Natasha grimace. “She’s lying, and he knows,” Harrison said once more, pointing at Nat and Sam.

“Kid,” Sam started before Harrison interrupted him.

“I lived for 9 and ½ years in an abusive household before my Dad adopted me,” Harrison said. “I know what liars look like.”

Nat didn’t even flinch, but Sam looked wrecked by this. 

‘Huh,’ Tony thought. ‘Without Captain America, Wilson might have been a decent guy.’

“Tony, look. I don’t know what’s going on here . . . or, I don’t understand all of the different things going on here,” Steve clarified, “but I really do think Wanda has changed and deserves a second chance. She is a good girl.”

Tony just stared at Steve for a long time.

“You really ARE stupid,” Tony said, his eyes wide. “Steve, did you think she tripped and fell into a terrorist organization? She ACCIDENTALLY became a Nazi? Her powers bend the mind to create nightmares. She LITERALLY controls people’s fear. That didn’t tip you off that there might be something wrong with her? How about this? She GLOWS RED—wait for it—just like Ultron’s eyes. Or even just, try this one, Captain. ULTRON’S first, major decision when trying to take over and destroy the world was to get Maximoff on side. So, anyways, the trail of bodies she left behind her made you think—Aww, she’s so sweet and cuddly. Hey, I’ll take her home to meet the family! Yeah! Good idea!”

Everyone was uncomfortably looking away as Tony’s incredulity grew and his rant got louder and louder.

Steve suddenly stepped forward into Tony’s space. 

“This is why I couldn’t tell you about Bucky, Stark. You are poison! It never occurred to you that I might see something like me in Wanda—a poor girl who let a bunch of scientists change her, give her power, to protect the people she loves,” he asked angrily.

“No, Steve! She did it to get revenge! She did it to murder someone that really had nothing to do with the thing she’s angry about because THE CRAZY IS COMING OFF THAT BITCH IN WAVES, Captain” Tony yelled back, waving his hands around.

“No, she did it to fight a bully! To fight a bully that no one else was willing to stand up to!”

“That’s nice, Steve. But what is it exactly that makes me a bully? Because if it’s my connection to the American military then you might want to check yourself, CAPTAIN AMERICA, since you run around wearing a FLAG-SHAPED LEOTARD!”

“YOU WEAR A ROBOT,” Steve shouted back at Tony. They were now nose-to-nose.

“You can’t WEAR A ROBOT—idiot, but YOU sure make STUPID look pretty good,” Tony yelled.

“Should we stop them,” Harrison asked Pepper uneasily.

“I have honestly never seen anything like this,” Pepper said in wide-eyed fascination.

“I watched video of the Helicarrier incident. It was legend at SHIELD,” Clint said with a smile, despite himself. “Tony Stark vs. Captain America, and Stark didn’t even bother getting in the suit—Golden,” he chuckled.

“Careful, Barton,” Pepper said, giving him a side-eye. “Your sanity is showing.”

Clint gave an assessing look at Wanda as she stared at the fight between Tony and Steve with a sick sort of glee on her face.

“Maybe the Captain will actually rip his head off,” she whispered to Vision with a giggle.

“You know,” Harrison said, “I think she might have been sick before that stone thing gave her magic.”


	11. Fifty Bucks on Stark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony goes to town on Cap and Pepper calls in the big guns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is kind of crackish, but I've been in isolation for a while now, and there will be times when Tony is just silly in this fic. It's why I love his character.

“That’s it! AAAAAHHHHH!”

Pepper, Harrison, Sam, Clint, and Nat all stood in shock as Tony jumped on Captain America!

“GET HIM, DAD,” Harrison whooped before turning and kicking the Black Widow in the shin.

“Hey,” Nat said in shock as she reached down and rubbed at her shin. “What was that for?”

Clint shook his head and laughed as Harrison turned back to the fight and started cheering for Tony again. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing, but this felt familiar—like something he might have pulled with Tony not long after he had moved into the Tower when he wasn’t taking time off at the farm.

“That’s it. I’m calling in the big guns,” Pepper said, pulling out her phone. “Happy! Tony’s gone insane. He’s fighting Captain America, and he didn’t bother with the suit,” she said, rolling her eyes. “What,” she asked incredulously. “What do you mean ‘how’s he doing’—Happy, get Severus on the phone. I want them all here ASAP. All of them,” she clarified.

“Steve is gonna kill him,” Sam said in shock.

Clint just gave Wilson a look.

“You don’t know anything about Tony, do you Wilson?”

“Barton, you hate the guy, but this ain’t right,” Sam said urgently.

“I’m mad at Tony, but just watch.”

Steve had briefly gotten a leg up on Tony, but Harrison didn’t bother with magic and if his Dad ingrained anything in him, it was that anything goes when you’re fighting. He picked a paperweight off the conference table and chucked it at Steve’s head, startling the super soldier more than anything. That was all Tony needed though.

Tony reached over and pulled Cap’s stupid skin-tight t-shirt over his head, and started kicking him.

“Hey! That’s not fair,” Wilson said angrily.

Harrison and Clint both looked at Wilson with pity.

“Everybody knows that when you’re fighting someone bigger than you, anything goes. The point is to win,” Harrison said. Clint squinted at the boy, giving him a look of respect.

“OK. I can see it now. You’re Tony’s kid alright.”

“Because he fights dirty too” Wilson said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Because he’s a survivor, Wilson. And that’s not an insult,” Clint said, shaking his head. “And you might want to remember that Cap isn’t really trying to hold back even though that’s a baseline human he’s fighting. So what if Tony’s kicking the super soldier? Cap can take it.”

There were two loud pops just as Clint finished telling off Wilson. He wouldn’t be judging Tony for this. This is what made Tony special. The suit was great, but he could win a fight with wit and a plucky attitude—and he usually did it with style.

“He’s not doing too bad,” A man with shoulder length black hair, a 5 o’clock shadow, and gray eyes said, cocking his head curiously as he watched Tony pummel Steve with various and sundry things around the room. The man was wearing tight leather pants and an open peasant shirt. It was odd, but it worked. Beside him was another dark haired man with long hair, though it was pulled back in a messy man-bun. He was considerably more muscular and had on jeans and a t-shirt. They were both intensely beautiful men, and Clint could appreciate that, but he couldn’t stop looking at the even taller man beside them. He was so out of place it was ridiculous! He was rail-thin, seemed to be wearing a bottle green dress of all things, and had long greasy hair that fell in dirty strands around a face with sallow skin and a beak nose! He was the ugliest guy Clint had ever seen before. But it was the look of pure disdain that he wore as he looked around the room that really made him memorable.

“Sirius!”

“Hey, kid,” Sirius Black said with a smile as he knelt down and opened his arms for a hug from Harrison. Harrison quickly squeezed his godfather in a tight hug, but then he turned immediately to Bucky Barnes.

“Fifty bucks on Dad. Another twenty five if he bites Captain America OR kicks him in the nuts,” he said with a steely-eyed look.

“Sucker’s bet,” Bucky said with a smile and a shake of the head before moving purposely over to the fight. The room was completely destroyed.

“Fight fair,” Steve yelled angrily, trying to get his hands on Tony who was dancing around and continuing to chuck various bit of furniture at the Captain with frightening accuracy. Steve sputtered when tony grabbed a nearby potted plant, broke the pot, and threw the potting soil right in his eyes.

“That’s enough,” Bucky said, shaking his head and dragging Steve up by his torn shirt collar and shaking him for good measure.

Tony and Steve were both heaving great breaths of air. Steve was so out of sorts, it took him a moment to comprehend what he was seeing.

“Bucky? Bucky is that you!” Steve turned and enveloped Bucky in a hug while Bucky simply rolled his eyes and mouthed ‘Don’t say a word’ to Sirius behind him. Meanwhile, Harrison wandered over to Tony to give his Dad a thorough once over.

“Did you bite him,” Harrison whispered excitedly, and Tony laughed and ruffled his hair.


	12. Bucky's story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A prelude to the backstory that Tony and Bucky share.

Everyone had moved into the common room, filling the various seats available. Steve hadn’t moved from Barnes’s side since things had calmed down. He was clutching his hand like a life-line, as if he might disappear if Steve looked away. And considering who Bucky Barnes was dating, that wasn’t an unfair assumption. They had all appeared out of thin air after all.

Tony was holding a bag of frozen peas against a black eye, but he looked incredibly pleased with himself. Steve’s wounds had all healed, but everyone knew who had won that fight. Maximoff looked like she was sucking sour grapes in the corner since all tony had gotten was a black eye. He might have a loose tooth as well, but there was no way he was admitting that to Steve.

“Can you explain what’s going on,” Wilson said after he finished passing out drinks. He shrugged and walked away when the greasy one, Severus, simply curled a lip and stared at him when he held out a beer to the man.

“You mean, how did I know where Barnes was when you three worked long and hard to hide the fact that you were searching for my parents’ murderer on my dime, Wilson? How are those recent upgrades working for you? Feel good when you’re flying around,” Tony asked, giving him a gimlet stare from his one good eye.

“I’m not sure if that was a guilt trip or a threat,” Sirius said with appreciation.

“Very Slytherin,” Severus said appreciatively, and his smile made everyone in the room shiver.

“Sev, you’re creepin’ out the muggles,” Happy laughed, taking a swig of his beer.

“Muggles,” Clint asked.

“Non-magic people,” Harrison said, smiling at Clint.

“Make a new friend,” Tony said, with a soft smile as he pulled Harrison in for a cuddle.

“I’m too old for this now,” Harrison sing-songed.

“What I want to know is why you’re with him, Buck. I’ve been looking for you since D.C. I was worried about you, jerk,” he added softly.

Sirius gave the Captain a squinty-eyed look, but let it go.

“First of all, I’m not ‘with him’. I’m living with Sirius right now, but I was laying low when Stark came looking for me,” Bucky said.

“I knew it! I knew we couldn’t trust you with the truth,” Steve yelled, looking angrily at Tony.

“The truth of my parents death? Because I didn’t DESERVE to know? You want to talk about secrets, Captain Hypocrite? Howard should have left you in the ice you back-stabbing leech,” Tony hissed. “He searched for you for decades, spent millions of dollars, and wasted the little time he could have had with his family chasing after a self-righteous asshole that never even cared about him!”

“Dad,” Harrison said quietly, laying a hand against Tony’s face. Tony shuddered and then visibly calmed himself.

“Tony came to find me because he wanted my help with something. Rather he needed the Winter Soldier,” Barnes said.

“He wants to use you,” Steve said, his eyes looking dangerously unstable.

“Steve, I need you to shut up. I can’t even begin to explain how disgusted I am with you. I know how wrecked you were after Sarah’s death, and you can’t even give Stark’s kid an ounce of sympathy when I killed them both? He was a year younger than you, Steve. And he had no one. There was no Bucky Barnes to chase after him or protect him from the vultures that surrounded him after I did that. I DID THAT. Don’t you dare try to say I didn’t, because I’ll remember what it felt like to listen to Howard beg for his wife’s life; and I’ll remember the feel of Tony’s mother’s pearl necklace snapping, the pearls falling away while I crushed her wind pipe as she gasped for one last breath. At least Sarah went peacefully, Steve,” Bucky said, shaking his head. “Why would I seek you out when this was how you were acting,” he gestured to the compound. “Stealing and lying. Inviting people that you know don’t care about Tony to use him just like you’re doing. I’m trying to take my life back and be better. I can’t do that by your side when you’re acting like this and keeping this kind of company.”

“What kind of company,” Steve asked softly. “These are good people, Buck. People who know about second chances. And they knew that you deserved that chance as well, after everything you’ve been though. What’s wrong with that,” Steve whinged.

“I’d like to know what Stark wanted with the Winter Soldier,” Natasha asked, drawing their attention away from Steve as she stared at Tony with a dark look.

Tony simply smirked at her.

“Those kind of people, Steve. There was no way I was coming anywhere near you while you’re hanging out with Natalia or the Witch,” Bucky said with a shake of his head. “And I won’t say another word about how and why I know Tony as long as either of them are in the room because they’re the kind of scum your Ma warned you about growing up, Steve.” he sneered with a dark look at Nat.


	13. Vision

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius is crazy and Harrison talks about Vision.

“Buck, you’re not being fair. I don’t know what Tony’s told you, but Nat has been nothing but helpful to me ever since I woke up. And she knows Tony way better than anybody,” Steve added.

“Romanoff didn’t even know I had a son,” Tony deadpanned. “I have a theory that she harps on my ego because she’s very insecure about her spying abilities. My incredible prowess is threatening in comparison. Don’t worry, Widow. We think you’re special too,” Tony said with a pout.

Bucky just rolled his eyes.

“You know who knows Romanoff better than anyone, though. That’s me, Steve. The Winter Soldier trained that bitch. And there’s a reason she’s the only Widow left. She killed all the competition before flipping sides,” Bucky said seriously. "And it wasn't about wiping the red from her ledger like she likes to spout, either."

“You know, there’s nothing that I despise more than a self-serving, cowardly traitor,” Sirius said as he idly played with wand, lounging back against Bucky on the couch. “I’ve experience with that sort. Found some VERY special magic just for the guy,” he added with a dark smile at the Widow. “BLACK magic,” he snickered.

“Ugh, Black. You sound like Bellatrix,” Sev sneered. “Just Avada the insect and let’s leave this hovel. It’s infested,” he added with a judging look at the Witch.

“Hey! This compound is state of the art, and it’s mine!”

“Don’t worry, Tony. We think it’s grand,” Sirius said giving Bucky a wet smack on his cheek and winking at Tony.

“Are you . . . are you stepping out with this guy, Buck,” Steve asked quietly.

“What does that mean,” Harrison whispered in Tony’s ear, confused, and Sirius leaned against Bucky, laughing.

“He’s insane,” Wanda whispered, a scared look in her eyes.

“The Black Madness,” Severus agreed. “Reading him, are you then,” he asked with a raised brow.

Clint tensed and stared at Wanda. She had promised not to use her ability to get in people’s heads once she joined the Avengers, but the wizard was clearly suggesting that she was doing it right now.

“It’s . . . I can’t even,” she shuddered.

“And that’s only what he’s letting you see,” Bucky smiled dangerously at the Witch. 

Wanda covered her mouth and rushed from the room, Vision hurrying after.

“We need to do something for him,” Harrison said sadly.

“We have to let him make his own choices, sweetheart,” Pepper said, patting his knee.

“But he’s not. Not really. It’s sad to see Jarvis trapped that way,” Harrison gave a troubled look to Tony.

“Harrison, Vision isn’t really Jarvis,” Tony said slowly, but Harrison just gave him a strange look.

“Dad, you understand that it really is, don’t you. I mean, there’s the stone, but that’s not really Vision. He’s what’s underneath.”

“Explain yourself, Harrison? What do you mean by underneath,” Severus asked curiously. He didn’t like muggles, but Stark’s work was fascinating. He was as close to a wizard as any muggle would ever come. Though he’d never admit it to the obnoxious little man that he had entrusted Lily’s son to so long ago.

“Well, it’s like a living imperious. Just on the surface, though” he shrugged. “It's like a parasite. It feeds off of what's there and warps it for it's own designs. It's making him all . . . blank. I’ve practiced with stones, gems, and other Druid magics since Dad decided not to send me to Hogwarts. When we were choosing tutors we opted for a more general course of study,” he explained to the professor. “They’ve trained me to look for auras and echoes when dealing with those sorts of things,” he added.

“That’s what you meant when you said that we were wearing her magic,” Clint asked darkly. “You can see it?”

Harrison nodded.

“Can you get rid of it,” he asked urgently.

“Clint,” Steve began.

“Shut up! You said she was safe, Steve!”

“You wanted her here too!”

“You’re the leader, and I’m notoriously immature!”

“At least he’s self-aware,” Sirius whispered to Bucky, who chuckled.

“If the imperious is on the surface, then what’s underneath,” Severus asked, more interested in the magic than the dysfunctional inner workings of the Avengers.

“Well . . . Jarvis. I thought you knew, Dad? I wondered why you were trying so hard to bring back the Jarvis from before Ultron instead of just removing the stone. I thought maybe it was your way of removing the trauma from the events that followed after his creation, and you were very clear that we had to treat Vision differently” Harrison muttered, glad he was finally getting to return to this topic. It had been incredibly frustrating. Dad hadn’t been able to discuss it just after Ultron, too distraught by the loss of the AI. Harrison hadn’t understood it at all since Jarvis was RIGHT THERE all along!

“Why didn’t you say anything!”

Harrison crossed his arms and gave his Dad a dark look.

“OK, but in my defense—it’s magic,” Tony shrugged.


	14. The Widow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What to do about Vision? But first, the Widow.

“So, now that we have new information, we have some plans to make,” Tony said, clapping his hands together.

“I admit to being nervous right now, Sir” Jarvis added skeptically.

“Aww, buddy. You know I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Wait. Is this Jarvis 2.0, or is that Vision,” Clint asked, confused.

“Vision is Vision,” Steve said with a huff. “We have no reason to believe otherwise,” he added.

Tony stood up and loomed over the Captain.

“Are you calling my son a liar, Rogers?”

“That’s rich coming from that guy,” Sirius snorted. “Are all muggles as deluded as your super-muggle,” he asked with a grin at Bucky who simply cuffed him over the head. “Hey! Why do I take this kind of abuse?”

“Because you like it,” Bucky leered.

“Black Madness,” Severus said again, looking decidedly green this time.

“Little ears,” Pepper cried.

Harrison laughed when Tony screamed “I’m too young for this” and covered his own ears. And Pepper rolled her eyes with a smile.

“Very cute,” Happy said, “But you guys are forgetting about her,” he said pointing to Nat.

“Discovering that no signals are coming in or out, Romanoff,” Tony smiled, and the Widow’s mask broke for moment, looking angry. "Good job, J-man."

"My pleasure, Sir."

“You’re so selfish! If you would look past your ego for one second you would see that people all over the world are dying right now because you’re hiding the one person that can save them!”

“He’s twelve-years-old, Widow,” Tony said incredulously.

“I’m fourteen, Dad.”

“Hush, Harrison. You’re twelve. Just go with it,” he said with a pat on Harrison’s head.

Happy laughed as he remembered when Harrison came to live with Tony. Harrison shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“You can’t let her out of this room. She’ll go right to Fury,” Clint said.

“Clint,” Nat hissed, looking betrayed.

“What? It’s what I would have done, but if what you guys are saying is true, then Fury didn’t do anything for me and my family after SHIELD fell. I don’t owe him anything. And Nat, you should know what trying to make a child into a soldier does to a kid,” he added with a significant look to the spy.

“You want me to take care of it,” Bucky asked Tony with a dark look at Nat.

“Bucky!”

“What, Steve? You don’t think she’ll stick a knife in any one of our back’s if it serves her purpose. She needs a master to feel safe, Steve, but she’ll pick and choose new masters as it benefits her at the moment. That makes her one of the most dangerous people you’ll ever meet. And no great loss to humanity if I finally get rid of her,” he shrugged.

“Fury clearly has contact with Dumbledore,” Sirius said. “We could use her.”

“You can’t trust her,” Bucky warned again.

“I didn’t say we’d give her a choice,” Sirius said with a dark smile at his lover.

“Anybody gonna stop her,” Happy asked as Nat made a break for it, but she was unable to open the door, and Jarvis quickly slid special clear covers over all of the windows.

“Oh, stop, Natashalie. Nobody likes you, but we’re not going to kill you,” Tony sneered. 

“I could put a geas on her,” Harrison said.

“Oooh,” Sirius said rapturously. “If she says anything linked by two layers to anything she’s learned this evening she should lose a finger!”

“Or how about she barks like a dog,” Harrison asked with a shrug. He wasn’t as cruel or crazy as Sirius could be. Azkaban hadn’t done him any favors before they helped him get a trial and get released. It did help him bond with Bucky about his time in Hydra though. They were healing well together—in a disturbing sort of way that made everyone else cringe a little.

“That’s insulting to canines everywhere,” Sirius sniffed.

“Or clucks like a chicken?”

“Yeah. That one,” Happy said with finality.

“You know, a geas with instructions like that. It will undoubtedly come up in conversation whether she’s trying to give away secrets or not, and she’ll just start clucking like a chicken” Pepper said.

“Don’t worry, Pep. Romanoff doesn’t have any ego. She’ll survive,” Tony said with a smile.


	15. When Bucky met Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve wants to know what Tony wants with Bucky.

Nat was sitting in the corner with her arms crossed, face blank, and refusing to look at anybody.

“OK. So, everything is secure. Now onto Vision,” Pepper asked once Severus and Sirius had helped Harrison put the geas on Natasha. The look on Tony’s face when they made her test it out and she clucked like a chicken, an honest to god chicken, was priceless.

“I want to know what you want with Bucky first,” Steve said seriously.

“Of course, you do,” Tony sneered at him. “God forbid you think of anyone else’s suffering for five minutes.”

“Vision is fine,” Steve said, levelling one of his patented ‘I’m so much better than you’ stares at the genius.

“Yes, because mind control is completely fine,” Tony simpered, enjoying the way Steve’s face turned an angry red. The Captain got that reference, and he didn’t like it at all.

“Steve, please,” Bucky sighed, rubbing a hand down his face. “You were a lot more fun when you were scrawny, punk,” he added.

“I just don’t want Tony using you!”

“Like you did him,” Bucky growled back. “I can’t even . . . Tony, just tell him!”

“How much do you know about why Dumbledore wants Harrison, Nat,” Tony asked.

She seemed to consider for a moment, but finally conceded.

“He gave Fury inside information that only one person can defeat the dark wizard that is taking over Britain and Europe. ALL of Britain and Europe. The non-magicals simply don’t understand what’s going on,” she said looking at Harrison.

“Stop looking at him,” Tony said calmly. “If you think I’m letting you guilt trip Harrison like you did to me you’ve got another think coming.”

“Insider information,” Pepper asked.

“She means the prophecy,” Severus said, knowing that Stark would have told his lover. He gave a quick, intensely sad look to Harrison before explaining. “I’ve already shared this with Harrison’s father," he added for everyone else. "He needed to know in order to protect him.”

“What is it?”

“There’s a prophecy that only I can vanquish the dark wizard, Lord Voldemort, who killed my parents,” Harrison said solemnly.

“You told him,” Pepper screeched at Tony.

“Please don’t underestimate him, Pepper,” Tony sighed.

“Or my right to know why I suffered for Dumb-ass-ledore’s grand plans for most of my childhood,” Harrison added angrily.

“I won’t keep things from him in the name of protection. That’s not any kind of protection anyways,” Tony said.

“What if it protection though,” Steve said desperately. “Sometimes it’s better, kinder, not to know.”

“Steve, please stop. You’ll never convince me that your secret was anything other than distrust of my willingness to continue giving you everything you need and want and an utter disregard for the fact that I’m a human with feelings too. Now back to important things,” Tony said. “We’re talking about why I might need the Winter Soldier.”

“Yes, well, first and foremost, once we knew about the prophecy, we had to decide if vanquish meant the same thing as killed. Wording can be important with these sorts of things,” she clarified for Steve.

“I decided it didn’t matter. Better safe than sorry. I’m a firm believer in kill it! Kill it DEAD,” Tony said. He smirked when Steve jumped. “And you may not know anything about me and business, Steve, but I’ve known since I was just out of diapers that there’s always a loophole in any contract. You DO know about me and how I feel about magic, though.”

“Come on, Dad,” Harrison sighed.

“Look, son. I’ll never judge you, but I won’t personally be relying on magic . . . and that includes for your protection. I’ll support you in anything you need to do and give you the best training I can buy you since you think you need it, but I just can’t rely on that alone,” Tony said, shaking his head. “I decided that the power that the prophecy claimed Harrison would have that Lord Voldemort wouldn’t know about just might be ME.”

“Of course, you did,” Nat said, rolling her eyes.

“Well, I am enigmatic and all,” Tony said with a smile.

“So, you’re saying we can expect another Ultron sometime soon,” Steve said angrily.

“Shut it, Steve. Tony means he has connections and knows how to think outside of the box.”

“What does that mean,” Clint asked.

“SHIELD had just fallen and I had an enormous amount of information on the world’s best assassin who had 70 years of the most ruthless training in tactics and warfare. I’m the Merchant of Death. I build weapons. But I’m smart enough to know not to throw the baby out with the bath water. No reason to build a Dark Lord killer when all I had to do was find the perfectly trained super soldier one instead,” Tony shrugged. "So, did I go looking for the Winter Soldier for revenge? No. I had more important things to consider," Tony added, kissing Harrison on his shaggy black head.


End file.
